Racine’s Historic Hotel Racine, 1893 – 1992
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Thursday, January 30, 2025
Cops Gone Wild: More Waupun prison staffers fired, resigned amid federal probe into alleged smuggling ring
From JSOnline:
Vanessa Swales
Vanessa Swales
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Nearly a dozen prison employees have now resigned or been fired since the U.S. Department of Justice launched a probe into a suspected drug, phone and contraband smuggling ring within Waupun Correctional Institution, according to the state's Department of Corrections.
That's up from the five previously reported by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel last spring.
Of the 11 staffers, nine had their employment terminated and two resigned while under investigation, according to DOC spokesperson Beth Hardtke. The department said it isn't yet releasing the names of nine individuals whose employment was terminated because they are still under investigation.
In September, however, a former facilities repair worker at Waupun Correctional Institution pleaded guilty in federal court to smuggling contraband into the prison, including cell phones, tobacco products and controlled substances. Between 2022 and 2023, the former employee had received payments from prisoners, former prisoners and "associates" of prisoners totaling more than $53,000.
The probe came at a time when the state's correctional system faced growing criticism from prison rights advocates and families of Waupun prisoners following a spate of in-custody deaths, extended lock-down periods and poor access to on-site health care and services.
In June 2023, Dean Hoffmann, 60, died by suicide after nine days in solitary confinement. An investigation by the Journal Sentinel found that prison workers failed to give him his bipolar and antidepressant medications as prescribed more than three-quarters of the time. Shortly thereafter, his family filed a lawsuit alleging prison staff were deliberately indifferent to Hoffmann's serious mental health needs.
In October 2023, 30-year-old Tyshun Lemons died of an accidental overdose of fentanyl and Cameron Williams, 24, died of a rare stroke. Fellow prisoners have accused prison workers of ignoring Williams' pleas for help before his death. Their families have filed separate civil rights lawsuits against DOC, each alleging that Lemons and Williams were deprived of constitutional rights protecting against cruel and unusual punishment.
Donald W. Maier, 62, died in February of last year, a week after staff began periodically switching off the water to prevent him from flooding his cell, according to a criminal complaint. He died of probable dehydration and malnutrition, and his death was ruled a homicide.
The Journal Sentinel also reported on the deaths of Jay J. Adkins, 66, who died in May, and Christopher L. McDonald, 57, who later died in August. Dodge County Sheriff Dale J. Schmidt did not immediately respond to questions about the status of his office's investigation into their deaths.
Last summer, the prison's former warden and eight other workers, including nurses, correctional sergeants and lieutenants at the facility, were arrested and charged with misconduct in office and abuse of residents of a penal facility related to the deaths of Williams and Maier.
32-year-old Walworth County man dies in Racine County crash
From JSOnline:
Drake Bentley
Drake Bentley
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
A 32-year-old Walworth County man died in a vehicle crash in Racine County Wednesday, authorities say.
The Racine County Sheriff's Office said the crash happened shortly after 3:30 p.m. in the town of Norway at the intersection of Highways K and S, or Apple Road and North Beaumont Avenue.
A preliminary investigation revealed the 32-year-old driver in a passenger car was stopped at the stop sign for Beaumont Avenue and pulled out in front of a utility pickup truck on Highway K, driven by a 28-year-old Racine County resident.
The sheriff's office said it's believed the Walworth County man was unfamiliar with the area. He was extricated from the heavily damaged car and life-saving efforts were attempted, but the man died at the scene, the sheriff's office said.
The driver of the pickup truck remained on scene and is fully cooperating with the investigation. No sign of impairment was seen for either driver and no other occupants were in the vehicles, the sheriff's office said.
No other information was immediately available.
Wednesday, January 29, 2025
When will the days start getting longer in Milwaukee?
From JSOnline:
Cailey Gleeson
Data courtesy of timeanddate.com.
Cailey Gleeson
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Milwaukeeans, rejoice. It may still be cold, but starting Wednesday you'll have a little bit more daylight to get you through the frigid temperatures.
The sun will once again begin setting after 5 p.m. this week.
Here's what to know:
When will the sun start setting after 5 p.m. in Milwaukee?
2025's first sunset after 5 p.m. in Milwaukee is on Wednesday, according to timeanddate.com.
The sun rose at 7:09 a.m. and will set at 5 p.m. — giving the city nine hours and 51 minutes of daylight.
When will the days get longer in Milwaukee again this winter?
| Date | Hours of daylight | Sunrise | Sunset |
| Feb. 1 | 9 hours, 58 minutes | 7:06 a.m. | 5:04 p.m. |
| Feb. 15 | 10 hours, 34 minutes | 6:48 a.m. | 5:23 p.m. |
| March 1 | 11 hours, 14 minutes | 6:27 a.m. | 5:41 p.m. |
| March 15 | 11 hours, 55 minutes | 7:03 a.m. | 6:58 p.m. |
| April 1 | 12 hours, 45 minutes | 6:33 a.m. | 7:18 p.m. |
| April 15 | 13 hours, 25 minutes | 6:09 a.m. | 7:34 p.m. |
When does daylight savings time begin in 2025?
Daylight savings will resume on Sunday, March 9, according to the Old Farmer’s Almanac.
The sun will set at 6:51 p.m. in Milwaukee on March 9, according to timeanddate.com. On March 8, it will set at 5:50 p.m.
When is Milwaukee’s longest day of the year?
The longest day of the year is the summer solstice, which will fall on Friday, June 20. Milwaukee saw 15 hours and 21 minutes of daylight during 2024’s summer solstice, per timeanddate.com, with the sun rising at 5:12 a.m. and setting at 8:34 p.m.
When is Milwaukee's shortest day of the year?
The shortest day of the year is the winter solstice, which will be on Sunday, Dec. 21 this year. Milwaukee is expected to receive nine hours of daylight — with a 7:20 a.m. sunrise and a 4:20 p.m. sunset, according to timeanddate.com.
More:What was that fiery streak in the sky Tuesday night over Wisconsin?
More:It's freezing cold in Wisconsin. When is the first day of spring 2025?
Lawmakers reverse DNR rule that banned guns for anglers in Wisconsin
From JSOnline:
Laura Schulte
Laura Schulte
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
MADISON - Anglers can now carry guns while they fish in Wisconsin after lawmakers overturned a decades-old rule on Wednesday.
The Joint Committee for the Review of Administrative Rules approved overturning the rule on a 7-3 vote without discussion.
The change comes after a conservative group highlighted the law last year and how it could potentially impact anglers who carried a gun for protection but didn't plan to use it on fish.
The Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty, WILL, filed the lawsuit on behalf of Travis Kobs in Sheboygan County seeking to repeal a state rule enacted by the Department of Natural Resources in 1999 barring anglers from possessing firearms that could be used for fishing.
More:Hearing and comment period set on potential Lake Michigan commercial fishing rule
Since then, the rule has prevented anglers from being able to carry any sort of firearm while they fish on the water and along banks and shores.
WILL said the regulation possibly violated the Second Amendment right to bear arms.
Kobs, according to the complaint, is an avid outdoorsman who also has a permit to conceal-carry a pistol for self-defense, which the regulation prevented him from doing while fishing.
The complaint also notes that musky fishing in Wisconsin can be dangerous, and until 1966, anglers often carried small guns to kill or incapacitate the fish before reeling them in. It also said Wisconsin's rules regarding fishing with firearms are some of the most restrictive in the nation.
Because there was a risk that a gun may be used for fishing, the regulation prohibited the possession of firearms completely.
After announcement of the lawsuit last year, the Department of Natural Resources pledged to repeal the rule, and said it already didn't enforce the rule. But, the agency said, anglers still won't be allowed to use guns to shoot fish, just simply carry them for protection.
Laura Schulte can be reached at leschulte@jrn.com and on X @SchulteLaura.
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